BAYFIELD – Harry Baxstrom watches his freshly made chicken-fried steak simmer and sizzle while cooking it in a cast iron Dutch oven over heated oak coal.
The smoke from underneath starts billowing out, and the steak starts turning golden brown but remains completely fresh and free of extra chemicals. With no thermometer to determine the meat’s readiness, he’s always attentive and learned over time just how many coal cinders he needs.
That’s what the co-founder of the La Plata Archuleta Cattlemen's Association Chuckwagon Rendezvous in Bayfield, which held its 21st annual event on Saturday at L-J Ranch, loves about that cooking method: the freshness, and the joy of other people eating fresh food. That’s why his plans to retire from the cooking portion of the event and focus more on the daily management operations are far from an easy decision. Still, he believes the time is near to put away the apron.
“I’m just getting old and don’t have as much help as I used to. My health isn’t as good as I’d like it to be,” Baxstrom, 77, said.
Baxstrom, whose top specialty dishes over the years include chicken-fried steak, peach cobbler and bread pudding, said the legacy he helped build made his decision more difficult, adding that he couldn’t imagine not having at least some involvement with the event.
“I believe in it so strongly. To just abandon it ... I can’t do that. ... It’s hard to not do something you’ve been doing a long time that you love,” he said. “… The best part is participating in something that you love. … We’re supportive of each other. It’s not so much about competition or anything; it’s about the camaraderie and friendships. … Even the people who come and eat at your wagon, there’s nothing like being able to hand someone a plate of food and have them smile back. … It makes you feel good about what you’ve done.”
Baxstrom said cooking food using oak coal as a heating source ensures there are no external pesticides or chemicals that may emanate from a gasoline-powered oven.
“They just get a clean taste,” he said.
Chuck wagons were operating mobile field kitchens back in the late 1800s where someone could transport and store their food and cooking equipment.
He said this kind of cooking format is not something seen every day. He also said the concept of chuck wagons were important to the area’s agriculture cattle businesses because they were a key part of that line of work with no trains around as a means for transportation.
Baxstrom, who’s also a recently retired veterinarian, appreciates the history of chuck wagons and the power of cooking fresh food in that manner.
“He’s just been instrumental in preserving the history of chuck wagons, especially in our Four Corners area. … He’s just been a big part of our community. … He’s a close friend of the family, someone that I respect and look up to,” said Krii Black, secretary for the La Plata Archuleta Cattlemen’s Association and the Chuckwagon Rendezvous event coordinator. “My husband (Paul Black) would just go and pick his brain, ask as many questions as he could, try to just learn from him.”
mhollinshead@durangoherald.com
A previous version of this article incorrectly spelled the Chuckwagon Rendezvous co-founder’s last name and misidentified the name of the coal.
